The White Sox announced that right-hander Jairo Iriarte and catcher Drew Romo have cleared waivers and been outrighted to Triple-A Charlotte, per Scott Merkin of MLB.com. Both will be in big league camp in spring training as non-roster invitees. The two were designated for assignment earlier this week as corresponding moves when the White Sox acquired Jordan Hicks and David Sandlin from the Red Sox.
Iriarte, 24, was once a notable prospect. The White Sox acquired him from the Padres two years ago as part of the return for Dylan Cease. His stock has dipped since then. In 2024, he tossed 126 Double-A innings. His 3.71 earned run average wasn’t bad but his 22.8% strikeout rate was a big drop from the 33.2% rate he had the year before. His walk rate remained high at 10.7%.
The control problems were already present before he came to the White Sox, which hinted at a potential long-term move to the bullpen. The Sox mostly used him in relief in 2025 but he didn’t take to the move. In 46 Triple-A innings, he had a 7.24 ERA. His 21.6% strikeout rate wasn’t great and his control got worse, with Iriarte walking 16.7% of batters faced.
He still has an option year remaining but that wasn’t enough to convince another club to give him a 40-man roster spot. This is his first career outright and he has less than three years of service time, so he doesn’t have the right to elect free agency. The Sox will keep him in a non-roster capacity and try to get him back on track.
Romo, 24, was also once a prospect of note. The Rockies recently decided to move on, however, and he has been riding the waiver wire this winter. He has gone from the Rockies to the Orioles, Mets and White Sox via waivers. Now that the Sox have passed him through unclaimed, they will be the ones who get to keep him. Like Iriarte, Romo doesn’t have the right to elect free agency.
The Rockies took Romo with the 35th overall pick in 2020. Considered a strong defender, his offense was decent enough as he climbed the ladder that he was ranked as one of the top prospects in Colorado’s system and even got some top 100 love. But his stock has faded lately as he has struggled at the plate. He slashed .264/.329/.409 in Triple-A last year, which looks good at first blush but actually translates to a 75 wRC+ in the hitter-friendly environment of the Pacific Coast League.
Romo will head to Charlotte and try to get back on track. He doesn’t currently have a great path to playing time, as the Sox have Kyle Teel, Edgar Quero and Korey Lee all on the roster. However, Lee is out of options and might get squeezed off. There has also been a bit of trade buzz around both Teel and Quero. It doesn’t seem like the Sox are motivated to move either but Romo’s path would improve if a deal does come together. As always, an injury could alter the calculus as well.
Photo courtesy of Matt Marton, Imagn Images
Jairo disappointed from day one after coming over in the Cease trade, The guy never tapped into his potential, and he was counted on to be MLB ready.
Good wake up call when no one else claims you and didn’t care about prior ‘prospect’ potential.
He could always do well in ST and could be called up again if he does well in AAA. He’s only 24 so he has some youth on his side for now.
I’m kind of glad Jairo passed through waivers. He’s 24 years old, I still think he can show something, just needs more development.
Ticket to Peoria
By the luck of the draw we got these guys back. Relieves the pain of losing Bryan Ramos.
Two nice players to have in Charlotte.
Are the Pale Hose gonna drop any crappy second basemen? Craig Breslow is ready to pounce and add to the Red Sox keystone collection!
The “crappiest” White Sox 2B is probably Lenyn Sosa and he would be an offensive upgrade over any of the current Red Sox collection at the keystone.
They want to improve defense though
Soon, because either Carlson, Bonemer or the 1st pick in the draft, Kochlowski: will be manning 2nd base by 2027.
Looking more and more like the best part of that trade for the White Sox was Steven Wilson. Zavala has flamed out in high A, Thorpe immediately had TJ, and Iriarte can’t find the plate so he is done.